When It Comes to the Dining Room, Furniture Choices Matter

When it comes to the dining room, furniture choices matter. The right dining room furniture will not only enhance the dining experience but will also affect the d©cor, mood and ambience of the entire home. Quality hand-crafted wood furniture helps create an atmosphere that invites family and friends to linger over a shared meal.Furniture blog

Functionally speaking, dining room furniture simply provides seating and surfaces for eating meals. Experts from fields as diverse as interior design and pediatric health are quick to point out that dining room furniture for social meals has significance beyond its practical purposes. Studies have shown that children from families who share meals together enjoy a host of health benefits, from better nutrition and better self-esteem to fewer incidents of depression and drug use.

Decorating for Mood and Atmosphere

Interior designers understand that certain materials and decorative styles are more conducive to promoting a convivial atmosphere than others. Natural materials like wood prompt an emotional as well as a visual response. Custom made furniture from wood evokes images of Amish craftsmen and artisans of the Arts and Crafts movement, furniture makers who are not only devoted to quality construction but who also care about the intrinsic beauty of wood. Both the Shaker and Mission decorative styles lend themselves well to dining room furniture. They styles are imbued with nostalgia yet possess the clean lines and form associated with modern design as well.Furniture blog

The Shaker Style

A belief that fine craftsmanship combined with functionality creates beautiful furnishings is at the heart of the Shaker decorative style. Since the 18th century, Amish people have been constructing furniture entirely by hand. The result is furniture that allows the inherent beauty of the wood to take center stage. By avoiding ornamentation and embellishments, the Shaker style emerged as a decorative style marked by clean, spare lines that complements both contemporary and traditional d©cor.

Mission Style Furniture

Craftsmanship is a key component of mission style furniture too. Inspired by the strong horizontal forms and heavy use of wood in California's missions, the Mission style represents America's take on the Arts and Crafts Movement of the early 20th century. In Europe, the Arts and Crafts style gained popularity as a reaction to both the heavily ornate Victorian style and the uninspired styles produced by the Industrial Revolution. In America, the focus was more on adding handcrafted elegance to the homes of the growing middle class, as exemplified in the Bungalow style of architecture.